Middlesex Original Creative Response

“But still she didn’t let go of my hand. Not for a while longer yet. The stretcher was wheeled down the corridor and my arm stretched out towards the Object… To gaze at the Obscure Object. For once more she was becoming a mystery to me… She stood at the end of the hall, holding my unraveling arm… Finally the inevitable moment came. The Object let go. My hand flew up, free, empty” (394-395).

"Fracture"

“Fracture” reflects both the chosen quote and the overall novel. The two sides represent Cal’s arm (left) and the Obscure Object’s arm (right) the moment the Object lets go. The Object’s arm is dot shaded it give it no clear boundary thereby causing it to be obscure and mysterious. The Object’s arm is also black on a white background, which causes the colors in Cal’s arm to stand out. The colors in Cal’s arm are used to represent that since Cal does not fit the characteristics of a traditional male or female, Cal’s gender is neither black nor white. The black boundary confining the colors in Cal’s arm represents society restricting Cal from openly accepting his own condition. The shape of Cal’s arm depicts the ups and downs of a rollercoaster and represents the “rollercoaster ride of a single gene through time” (4). The rollercoaster leads to the fracturing of the bond between Cal and the Object’s arms. The fracturing symbolizes both the “single gene” fracturing Cal’s life, and the fracturing of Cal’s connection to society when he finds out his true identity.

Eugenides, Jeffrey. Middlesex. New York: Picador, 2002. Print.

Middlesex Personal Experience

“Many cedars were standing straight up but many were leaning over. Still others had fallen against nearby trees, or crashed to the ground, popping up root systems. There was a graveyard feeling: everywhere the gray skeletons of trees” (369).

           

In this excerpt Cal describes her trip through the northern Michigan woods with the Object, Rex, and Jerome to reach the hunting shack. The woods are a cedar swamp causing the group to have trouble with their footing and only make “clumsy, yahoo progress” (369). From Cal’s description it is clear that the woods are untouched by humans and nature is allowed to take its natural course of action. Trees fall over, decompose, and provide the nutritious soil for the next generation of trees to sprout. While Cal describes the scene as giving off a “graveyard feeling”, I find that this type of environment creates a different feeling.

By using the word “graveyard” to describe the woods, Cal not only details the woods as featuring dead trees, but also labels the unease she feels. While I understand the unease Cal feels from walking and looking into the dark and unknown, I do not believe it is realistic for her unease to stretch to a “graveyard” level especially if she is with three other people. Additionally, not only is the unease Cal feels unrealistic, but the continuing unease is too. From my personal experience of camping, after a while any unease completely disappears and the night forest cast a tranquil atmosphere. The quiet blow of the wind, the motionless trees, the fixed stars in the sky; they all cause the night forest to seem untroubled and leaving the hiker or camper to be in a relaxed state. I can remember several instances of looking up through the cracks in the trees and being mesmerized by the stars pasted on the night sky. Therefore from my personal experience hiking through the woods during the night does not create a “graveyard feeling”; rather it creates a serene feeling.

A more effective way that Eugenides could have used the dead trees in the forest was to use them as a representation of rebirth. By using the trees as a representation of rebirth Eugenides could have effectively foreshadowed Cal’s discovery later in the chapter. Like the trees of the forest, the old Cal dies and the new Cal emerges.

Eugenides, Jeffrey. Middlesex. New York: Picador, 2002. Print.

Middlesex Text-to-Text

“Though our parents were friends, I hardly knew Maxine…She was the only Jewish kid at school. She ate lunch alone, spooning kosher food from Tupperware” (321).

            As part of the description of her advanced English course, Cal mentions the other girls in the class. One of these girls is Maxine Grossinger, a daughter of two Orthodox Jewish parents. From Cal’s description of Maxine it is clear that because of her parents’ faith, she is ostracized at school. Parents’ identity affecting their children socially is not limited to Maxine in the novel. Stepping a generation back from Cal, Milton is degraded by the real estate agent’s point system because of Lefty and Desdemona’s race and religion. As for Cal, her parents’ race and status causes her to be looked down by her school peers. The “old money” students, or the Charm Bracelets, label Cal as “ethic” for being Greek and not being from a long established family,

            In addition to being negatively affected by her parent’s outward appearance, Cal suffers because of her families’ genetic condition. As a result of the family’s incest, Cal is born both as a male and as a female, negatively affecting Cal, as it causes her to be uncomfortable with herself and distanced by others.

Other text that we have read in this course that deals with parents’ status and reputation affecting their children is Oedipus the King by Sophocles. After Oedipus’ true past is uncovered, he mourns about the future of his children. Oedipus cries,

“I think about your life in days to come,
     

the bitter life which men will force on you…

Who, then, will marry you? No one, my children.
     

You must wither, barren and unmarried” (1758-1773).

Because of the “crimes” Oedipus committed, his children will be forever alienated by their own society. Oedipus’ reputation will tail the children even though they had nothing to do with the patricide and incest.

            The reason both text include parents’ identity negatively effecting their children is because it is a reality that is very prevalent and has not only social effects but others effects as well. By including this element of life, both texts reveal that like the pre-determination of genetics, parts of your reputation and standing are already set even before you discover self-choice.

Eugenides, Jeffrey. Middlesex. New York: Picador, 2002. Print.

Sophocles. Oedipus the King. The Three Theban Plays. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin Classics, 1984. Print.